US President Barack Obama gave a strong endorsement of German Chancellor Angela Merkel and used a visit to Berlin yesterday (17 November) to warn Russia about consequences for intervening in the US election and prod Donald Trump to hold firm against Moscow.

With Trump, Merkel may settle for avoiding an open argument or a 140-character Twitter missive.

Before coming to office the US president called Merkel’s acceptance of refugees a “catastrophic mistake” and said she was “ruining Germany”.

US Republican presidential contender Donald Trump said German Chancellor Angela Merkel was wrong to let in thousands of migrants into Germany and that the refugee crisis could trigger revolutions and even the end of Europe.

He also demanded countries like Germany step up defence spending, a sensitive issue for a nation that has had a strong pacifist tradition since World War II and advocates for fiscal prudence.

In a similar vein, Merkel has sought to remind the real estate mogul of democratic values.

Any “close cooperation”, she said, must be on the basis of the “values of democracy, freedom, respect for the rule of law and human dignity, regardless of origin, skin color, religion, gender, sexual orientation or political belief”.

‘Leader of the free world’

Comments like that have prompted some of Trump’s fiercest critics to declare Merkel the new “leader of the free world”, a moniker normally taken up by the occupant of the White House.

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said yesterday (16 February) that Europe must not cave in to US demands to raise military spending, arguing that development and humanitarian aid could also count as security. His chief spokesperson however said different things.

And European officials still fret that Trump has too closely embraced the nationalist ideology of key advisor Steve Bannon.

Bannon who has championed trade protectionism and opposed the European Union and other multilateral institutions that underpin the world order.

Merkel is sure to raise the issue of a proposed US border tariff that would hit German manufacturers hard. To underscore the point she will bring a host of German business leaders along for the trip.

Germany will press G20 members to sign off on a set of principles including free trade at this week’s meeting of the group’s financial leaders, in what the Trump Administration may perceive as a challenge to its more protectionist stance.

Before departing for the United States, Merkel noted she will be going to Washington as an envoy of Germany, but also Europe.

“I will of course point out that for us, our country and our membership in the European Union are two sides of the same coin,” Merkel said ahead of the visit.

But in a conciliatory tone, a White House official said that Trump will seek out Merkel’s views on Russia.

That is a nod to her years on the international stage and experience growing up in communist East Germany, where she learned Russian.

“The president will be very interested in hearing the Chancellor’s views on her experience in interacting with Putin,” said the official, on condition of anonymity.

“Of course she has been doing this for more than a decade,” the official said. “He’s going to be very interested in hearing her insights on what it’s like to deal with the Russians.”

Billed as Germany’s “anti-Trump”, former foreign minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier was elected Sunday (12 February) as the new head of state, vowing to stand up to simplistic populist rhetoric.

Merkel-Putin meeting

Merkel will visit Moscow for talks on 2 May, Russian President Vladimir Putin said yesterday, for the first bilateral visit since Russia annexed Ukraine’s Crimea Peninsula in 2014.

The agenda of Merkel’s visit has yet to be made public, but talks are likely to focus on Ukraine, EU sanctions, trade ties and German concerns that Russia may try to meddle in a parliamentary election in September.

Germany is also president of the G20 group of leading nations this year and Merkel will need to meet with key members ahead of an upcoming summit.

“Give my best wishes to the federal chancellor,” Putin told Horst Seehofer, Bavaria’s prime minister, who was in Moscow for talks on Thursday. “We are waiting for her to visit on 2 May.” Seehofer confirmed Merkel was planning to visit that day.

Putin and Merkel have met on numerous occasions since the Ukraine crisis, including visits to each other’s capitals. But those meetings were on the sidelines of multilateral gatherings. In terms of diplomatic protocol, a bilateral visit carries more cachet.